COLUMBUS – Ohio State has not been this far away from the top of The Associated Press poll since late in the 2014 season, when the Buckeyes were still recovering from an early season loss but on their way to a championship.
(8/9) Ohio St. (1-1, 1-0 Big Ten) vs. Army (2-0), Ohio Stadium, Sept. 16 (4:30 p.m./FOX)
OSU (1-1, 1-0) dropped from No. 2 to No 8 in the poll and Oklahoma took Ohio State’s place at No. 2, right behind Alabama, after the Sooners scored the most impressive victory of week two.
Ohio State suffered even more in the coaches’ poll, dropping from second to ninth.
Baker Mayfield threw for 386 yards and three touchdowns as Oklahoma knocked off Ohio State, 31-16. Mayfield, the fifth-year senior and Heisman candidate, had no trouble finding wide open receivers as the Sooners pulled away in the second half.
Ohio State’s J.T. Barrett, meanwhile, could never get the Buckeyes going, but head coach Urban Meyer told reporters unequivocally after the game that he was not contemplating a change at quarterback.
“I feel the same pressure as everyone here to get very good at the pass game,” he said. “We’ve worked extremely hard at it. It wasn’t good tonight. We’ve got to get the damn thing fixed, and we will.”
Three of the top six teams from last week defeated other ranked teams on Saturday.
Clemson remained at No. 3, followed by Southern Cal and Penn State. Washington, Michigan, Ohio State, Oklahoma State and Wisconsin fill out the top 10.
UCLA cracked the poll at No. 25, and Notre Dame fell out following a 20-19 loss to Georgia.